about

By jusTodd

phocas.net is an ongoing media project and publication related to music, dance, life, art, and cultural events and storyboards.

Originally launched 08.24.00, the site started off as a project site and testing ground for various internet-related concepts, as well as a portal to work with web design projects, and other personal concepts.

One personal project dominated the domain from 2001 through 2009, transforming this space into an online media source documenting the electronic dance music culture of that time.

Quite possibly the largest collection of pre-social media photos related to underground dance music, the site hosts more than 100,000 photographs.

It is a snapshot of an era, encompassing the people, the DJs, and the performers in and around Kansas City, as well as other locations from Miami to San Francisco, Minneapolis to New Orleans, nearly every point between, and even a few points beyond.

The story for that time begins in December 2001, and is documented loosely under the backstory tag, beginning with the "inspiration."

Access to photos and video are available under the original event date through the story archive.  All are cataloged by individual event post, except those  associated site publication, which ran briefly 2004 through 2006.  The photos from that particular time period are compiled in a singular post for any given month. 

A couple of the old collections of photos now live over on Facebook. All new photos, and those previously on the site, have been restored on Google Photos.



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32nd world championship cardboard boat races

By jusTodd
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While visiting the great state of Arkansas, we had the opportunity to check out this event, which had been elusive for several years.  The endurance of some of these hand manufactured boats was quite surprising, and amusing at times. Apparently, the theme of the year was Star Wars, and there were quite a variety of flotation constructions about the landscape of Sandy Beach. All of the contraptions endured the warm waters quite well, and really did not take on any water.  It was quite surprising, considering the construction materials permitted. A few, while water tight, contained a few minor design flaws that caused disintegration under pressure. One almost fell apart at the starting line, and eventually did, prior to the finish line. It was quite a lot of fun though, and a full house on the beach in spite of threatening rain.  We look forward to getting back to it again. view more photos from this event or add your own to the mix
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country, cardboard, & fireworks

By jusTodd
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image borrowed from KATV A beautiful weekend unfolded in north central Arkansas for the Fourth of July holiday.  The promise of mostly clear skies, hot and steamy weather, and yet another edition of the World Championship Cardboard Boat Races ensured a good time for all involved. While many delayed their journey until that Friday afternoon, we got a jump on things and made it down Thursday evening.  This offered up the opportunity to squeeze in a little hiking about, visiting with family and friends, and general relaxation, prior to the main event. It also enabled us to catch a late evening performance at Sandy Beach by a couple of stars from "The Voice."  Cory Jackson and Marybeth Byrd took the stage, aka flatbed semi-trailer, in the parking lot overlooking the beach and a fantastic sunset at 7 pm. Cory led off with a string of well known tunes mixed in with a few of his own.  He has got a voice that pairs well with the tunes he chose to croon, never missing a beat.  The sma
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miss hawaiian tropic international model search 2003 kc finals

By jusTodd
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The final night was finally here, and all the winners from the previous weekends, alongside their runner-up made one last appearance in their finest, then their own swim wear, and finally in swimwear provided by Hawaiian Tropic.  Only one would go on to the regional contest.  Shotgun Jackson provided his usual distractions on the microphone, with drinks and dancing, courtesy of beats from DJs Steve Thorell and Bill Pile, all around for those that stayed to the very end. view more photos from this event ... and if you want to see what led up to this date, the preliminaries ... Week 5 Week 4 Week 3 Week 2 Week 1
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